Method and mobile terminal for processing touch input

ABSTRACT

A method and a mobile terminal for processing touch input are provided. The mobile terminal has a rectangular touch screen with long sides and short sides. The mobile terminal having two state: a first state in which only the short sides are parallel with a horizontal surface and a second state in which only the long sides are parallel with the horizontal surface. The method comprises the following steps of: obtaining from the touch screen a gesture in a first direction as input by a touch object on the touch screen when the mobile terminal is in the first state; triggering a first touch command in response to the gesture in the first direction; obtaining from the touch screen a gesture in a second direction as input by the touch object on the touch screen when the mobile terminal is in the second state, the second direction being the same as the first direction; and triggering the first touch command in response to the gesture in the second direction. According to the embodiments of the present invention, it is possible to achieve a uniform operation gesture for the same operational instruction by means of self-conversion of the mobile terminal, such that the user experience can be improved.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to communication technology, and more particular,to a method and a mobile terminal for processing touch input.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Currently, a terminal with a touch screen, such as a touch handset or apersonal digital assistant (PDA), is typically not provided withphysical keys. All operations are achieved by touching the touch screenusing a gesture. As an example, for an existing touch handset, its touchscreen generally displays a longitudinal screen and a user performstouch operations in a longitudinal-screen states. For example, theuser's finger can slide on the touch screen towards left, indicating anoperational instruction of “return”. Then, a processor within thehandset can execute the return instruction in response to the touchinstruction, so as to output a display interface after the returnoperation.

From the research of the prior art, the inventors make the followingfindings. The touch screen of a touch terminal typically displays alongitudinal screen. When the user rotates the terminal to display alateral screen, the display interface is switched to a display outputinterface in a lateral-screen state. However, in the prior art, whilethe display output interface of the touch terminal can be switchedbetween the lateral-screen state and the longitudinal-screen state, thetouch gestures cannot be switched as the state of screen changes. In theabove example where the user's finger slides on the touch screen towardsleft, if the touch screen is switched from lateral to longitudinal, thenthe user needs to switch his/her finger action from sliding towards leftto sliding downwards to achieve the operational instruction of “return”.In other words, according to the prior art, the user needs to remembertouch gestures for different states if the displaying state of the touchscreen changes between different states. Since there is no uniformoperation gesture for the same operational instruction, the userexperience is deteriorated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is to provide a method and a mobileterminal for processing touch input, capable of solving the prior artproblem that there is no uniform touch gesture for different states of atouch screen of a touch mobile terminal and the user experience is thusdeteriorated.

In order to solve the above problem, the embodiments of the presentinvention provide the following solutions.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a method forprocessing touch input is provided, which is applied in a mobileterminal having a rectangular touch screen with long sides and shortsides. The mobile terminal having two states: a first state in whichonly the short sides are parallel with a horizontal surface and a secondstate in which only the long sides are parallel with the horizontalsurface. The method comprises:

-   -   obtaining from the touch screen a gesture in a first direction        as input by a touch object on the touch screen when the mobile        terminal is in the first state;    -   triggering a first touch command in response to the gesture in        the first direction;    -   obtaining from the touch screen a gesture in a second direction        as input by the touch object on the touch screen when the mobile        terminal is in the second state, the second direction being the        same as the first direction; and    -   triggering the first touch command in response to the gesture in        the second direction.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a mobileterminal having a rectangular touch screen with long sides and shortsides is provided. The mobile terminal has two states: a first state inwhich only the short sides are parallel with a horizontal surface and asecond state in which only the long sides are parallel with thehorizontal surface. The mobile terminal comprises:

-   -   an obtaining unit configured for obtaining from the touch screen        a gesture in a first direction as input by a touch object on the        touch screen when the mobile terminal is in the first state;    -   a triggering unit configured for triggering a first touch        command in response to the gesture in the first direction; and    -   a determination unit configured for determining whether the        mobile terminal is switched from the first state to the second        state;

wherein the obtaining unit is further configured for obtaining from thetouch screen a gesture in a second direction as input by the touchobject on the touch screen when the mobile terminal is in the secondstate, the second direction being the same as the first direction; and

the triggering unit is further configured for triggering the first touchcommand in response to the gesture in the second direction.

It can be seen from the above solutions according to the embodiments ofthe present invention that the mobile terminal according to the presentinvention has a rectangular touch screen with long sides and shortsides. The mobile terminal has two states: a first state in which onlythe short sides are parallel with a horizontal surface and a secondstate in which only the long sides are parallel with the horizontalsurface. A gesture in a first direction as input by a touch object onthe touch screen is obtained from the touch screen when the mobileterminal is in the first state. A first touch command is triggered inresponse to the gesture in the first direction. A gesture in a seconddirection as input by the touch object on the touch screen is obtainedfrom the touch screen when the mobile terminal is in the second state,the second direction being the same as the first direction. The firsttouch command is triggered in response to the gesture in the seconddirection. With the embodiments of the present application, when a touchgesture is input through a mobile terminal, it is possible to ensurethat the same input gesture of the user will trigger the samecorresponding touch command, regardless of how the orientation of themobile terminal changes. Since a uniform operation gesture for the sameoperational instruction can be achieved by means of self-conversion ofthe mobile terminal, the user does not need to remember the respectivetouch gestures in different states of the mobile terminal, such that theuser experience can be improved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating the first embodiment of the methodfor processing touch input according to the present invention;

FIG. 2A is a flowchart illustrating the second embodiment of the methodfor processing touch input according to the present invention;

FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram showing the coordinate system when themobile terminal is in the first state according to the above secondembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2C is a schematic diagram showing the conversion of the coordinatesystem when the mobile terminal is in the second state according to theabove second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the third embodiment of the methodfor processing touch input according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the first embodiment of the mobile terminalaccording to the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the second embodiment of the mobileterminal according to the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the third embodiment of the mobile terminalaccording to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Among the following embodiments of the present invention, someembodiments relate to a method for processing touch input while theother embodiments relate to a mobile terminal. The mobile terminalaccording to the embodiments of the present invention is a touch mobileterminal having a typically rectangular touch screen with long sides andshort sides. For the purpose of explanation, two states of the touchmobile terminal are set: a first state in which only the short sides areparallel with a horizontal surface and a second state in which only thelong sides are parallel with the horizontal surface.

In the following, the embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed in further detail with reference to the figures, such that theabove objects, features and advantages of the present invention will bemore apparent to those skilled in the art.

Reference is now made to FIG. 1, which is a flowchart illustrating thefirst embodiment of the method for processing touch input according tothe present invention.

At step 101, a gesture in a first direction as input by a touch objecton the touch screen is obtained from the touch screen when the mobileterminal is in the first state.

At step 102, a first touch command is triggered in response to thegesture in the first direction.

At step 103, a gesture in a second direction as input by the touchobject on the touch screen is obtained from the touch screen when themobile terminal is in the second state. The second direction is the sameas the first direction.

Herein, a gravity sensor can be provided in the mobile terminal todetect whether the mobile terminal is in the first state or the secondstate. In an embodiment, a first gravity parameter value correspondingto the first state and a second gravity parameter value corresponding tothe second state can be preset for the gravity sensor. When the gravitysensor senses the first gravity parameter value, a first state messageis returned. From the first state message, it can be determined that themobile terminal is in the first state. When the gravity sensor sensesthe second gravity parameter value, a second state message is returned.From the first state message, it can be determined that the mobileterminal is in the second state. Alternatively, during the process inwhich the gravity sensor constantly detects a gravity parameter value,the mobile terminal continuously detects the gravity parameter value.When the parameter value is detected to be the first gravity parametervalue, it can be determined that the mobile terminal is in the firststate. When the parameter value is detected to be the second gravityparameter value, it can be determined that the mobile terminal is in thesecond state.

At step 104, the first touch command is triggered in response to thegesture in the second direction and the current process ends.

In the above embodiment, the first and the second directions are takenwith reference to the horizontal surface, i.e., relative to thehorizontal surface.

It can be seen from the above first embodiment that, when a touchgesture is input through a mobile terminal, it is possible to ensurethat the same input gesture of the user will trigger the samecorresponding touch command, regardless of how the direction of themobile terminal changes. Since a uniform operation gesture for the sameoperational instruction can be achieved by means of self-conversion ofthe mobile terminal, the user does not need to remember the respectivetouch gestures in different states of the mobile terminal, such that theuser experience can be improved.

Reference is now made to FIG. 2A, which is a flowchart illustrating thesecond embodiment of the method for processing touch input according tothe present invention. In this embodiment, it is possible to ensure thatthe same input gesture will trigger the same touch command by conversionof coordinate system with respect to different states.

At step 201, a first gravity parameter value corresponding to the firststate and a second gravity parameter value corresponding to the secondstate are preset for the gravity sensor within the mobile terminal.

At step 202, a first coordinate system corresponding to the first stateand a second coordinate system corresponding to the second state arepreset for the mobile terminal.

At step 203, a gesture in a first direction as input by a touch objecton the touch screen is obtained from the touch screen when the mobileterminal is in the first state.

In the first state, the gravity sensor senses the first gravityparameter value. The touch object, which can be for example a finger ora stylus, inputs on the touch screen the gesture in the first directioncorresponding to a particular touch command.

Herein, if the first direction is up direction, it instructs to displaya menu. If the first direction is down direction, it instructs to hide amenu. If the first direction is left direction, it instructs to returnback to the higher level of menu. However, these examples areillustrative only. Other correspondences between directions and gesturescan be set depending on implementation requirement. In general, it ispossible to determine the first direction indicates which one of up,down, left and right directions by setting ranges of angles. Forexample, a circle which is plotted counter-clockwise can be divided inthe following manner. If the horizontally right direction represents 0°(or 360°), the first direction can be determined as the up direction ifit is within the range from 40° to 140°, as the left direction if it iswithin the range from 140° to 230°, as the down direction if it iswithin the range from 230° to 310°, or as the right direction if it iswithin the range from 310° to 40°.

At step 204, touch point information regarding a touch point at whichthe gesture in the first direction touches the touch screen is obtained.

At step 205, the touch point information is mapped into the firstcoordinate system.

FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram showing the coordinate system when themobile terminal is in the first state according to the above secondembodiment of the present invention. As shown, the X axis and the Y axisrepresent the first coordinate system in the first state.

At step 206, the first touch command is obtained based on a coordinatevalue and a coordinate direction of the touch point information in thefirst coordinate system.

The arrow towards the right direction as shown in FIG. 2B represents thegesture in the first direction. This gesture corresponds to a sequenceof touch points on the touch screen, regarding which touch pointinformation can be mapped into the above first coordinate system. Thecoordinate value and the coordinate direction of the touch pointinformation regarding the sequence of touch points can be obtained fromthe trace of the touch points. As shown in FIG. 2B, the first directioncan be determined as the right direction.

At step 207, it is determined whether the gravity sensor senses thechange from the first gravity parameter value to the second gravityparameter value. If this is the case, the process proceeds with step208; otherwise, it returns to step 207.

The gravity sensor is always in an active state for sensing the changein gravity parameter. When the user switches the mobile terminal fromthe first state corresponding to the longitudinal screen to the secondstate corresponding to the lateral screen, the parameter sensed by thegravity sensor will change from the first gravity parameter value to thesecond gravity parameter value accordingly.

At step 208, it is determined that the mobile terminal is switched fromthe first state to the second state based on a state switch commandreturned from the gravity sensor.

At step 209, a gesture in a second direction as input by the touchobject on the touch screen is obtained from the touch screen. The seconddirection is the same as the first direction.

Herein, in consistent with the settings for the first state, if thesecond direction is up direction, it instructs to display a menu. If thesecond direction is down direction, it instructs to hide a menu. If thesecond direction is left direction, it instructs to return back to thehigher level of menu. In the second state, it is also possible todetermine the second direction indicates which one of up, down, left andright directions by setting ranges of angles. The setting of the rangesof angles can be the same as, or independent of, the setting in thefirst state. For example, again, a circle which is plottedcounter-clockwise can be divided in the following manner. If thehorizontally right direction represents 0° (or 360°), the seconddirection can be determined as the up direction if it is within therange from 40° to 130°, as the left direction if it is within the rangefrom 130° to 230°, as the down direction if it is within the range from230° to 320°, or as the right direction if it is within the range from320° to 40°.

At step 210, the second coordinate system can be converted into thefirst coordinate system.

FIG. 2C is a schematic diagram showing the coordinate system when themobile terminal is in the second state according to the above secondembodiment of the present invention. As shown, the X′ axis and the Y′axis represent the second coordinate system in the second state. Inorder to make the second coordinate system to be the same as the firstcoordinate system as shown in FIG. 2B such that an input gesture in thesame direction will trigger the same touch command, the secondcoordinate system composed of the X′ and Y′ axes as indicated in dashedlines in FIG. 2C is converted into the first coordinate system composedof the X and Y axes as indicated in solid lines.

At step 211, touch point information regarding a touch point at whichthe gesture in the second direction touches the touch screen isobtained.

At step 212, the touch point information is mapped into the firstcoordinate system converted in the second state.

At step 213, the first touch command is obtained based on a coordinatevalue and a coordinate direction of the touch point information in theconverted first coordinate system and the current process ends.

The arrow towards the right direction as shown in FIG. 2C represents thegesture in the second direction. Like the above first direction, thisgesture corresponds to a sequence of touch points on the touch screen,regarding which touch point information can be mapped into the aboveconverted first coordinate system. The coordinate value and thecoordinate direction of the touch point information can be obtained fromthe trace of the touch information. As shown in FIG. 2C, the seconddirection can be determined as the right direction and the touch commandcorresponding to the second direction is the same as the touch commandcorresponding to the first direction. In this way, the user can obtainthe same touch command by inputting the same gesture, regardless ofwhether the mobile terminal is in the first or the second state, suchthat the user experience can be improved.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the third embodiment of the methodfor processing touch input according to the present invention. In thisembodiment, it is possible to ensure that the same touch gesture willtrigger the same touch command by presetting for each state acorrespondence between gestures and touch commands.

At step 301, a first gravity parameter value corresponding to the firststate and a second gravity parameter value corresponding to the secondstate are preset for the gravity sensor within the mobile terminal.

At step 302, a correspondence is preset between, on one hand, the firstdirection in the first state and the second direction in the secondstate and, on the other hand, the first touch command.

The correspondence between a directional gesture in each state and atouch command can be preset in a list as shown in Table 1 below.

TABLE 1 State of Mobile Description of Directional Touch CommandTerminal Gestures Return to higher level of First state Slide from rightto left menu Second state Slide from right to left Display menu Firststate Slide upwards Second state Slide upwards Hide menu First stateSlide downwards Second state Slide downwards

The information in the above Table 1 can be stored in a touch sensor inadvance. When a gesture in a particular direction is received, acorresponding touch command can be obtained by looking up in the table.As it is preset that the same directional gesture corresponds to thesame touch command in the first and the second states, subsequently, thesame touch command can be triggered by inputting the same directionalgesture regardless of whether the mobile terminal is in the first or thesecond state.

At step 303, a gesture in a first direction as input by a touch objecton the touch screen is obtained from the touch screen when the mobileterminal is in the first state.

At step 304, the preset correspondence is retrieved based on the firstdirection.

At step 305, the first touch command corresponding to the firstdirection is obtained from the correspondence.

At step 306, it is determined whether the gravity sensor senses thechange from the first gravity parameter value to the second gravityparameter value. If this is the case, the process proceeds with step307; otherwise, it returns to step 306.

At step 307, it is determined that the mobile terminal is switched fromthe first state to the second state based on a state switch commandreturned from the gravity sensor.

At step 308, a gesture in a second direction as input by the touchobject on the touch screen is obtained from the touch screen. The seconddirection is the same as the first direction.

At step 309, the preset correspondence is retrieved based on the seconddirection.

At step 310, the first touch command corresponding to the seconddirection is obtained from the correspondence. The current process ends

In correspondence with the embodiments of the method for processingtouch input according to the present invention, embodiments of themobile terminal is also provided according to the present invention.

The mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present inventionhas a rectangular touch screen with long sides and short sides. Themobile terminal having two states: a first state in which only the shortsides are parallel with a horizontal surface and a second state in whichonly the long sides are parallel with the horizontal surface. In anembodiment, the mobile terminal can further comprise a gravity sensor.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the first embodiment of the mobile terminalaccording to the present invention.

The mobile terminal comprises an obtaining unit 410 and a triggeringunit 420.

The obtaining unit 410 is configured for obtaining from the touch screena gesture in a first direction as input by a touch object on the touchscreen when the mobile terminal is in the first state.

The triggering unit 420 is configured for triggering a first touchcommand in response to the gesture in the first direction.

Herein, the obtaining unit 410 is further configured for obtaining fromthe touch screen a gesture in a second direction as input by the touchobject on the touch screen when the mobile terminal is in the secondstate. The second direction is the same as the first direction.

The triggering unit 420 is further configured for triggering the firsttouch command in response to the gesture in the second direction.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the second embodiment of the mobileterminal according to the present invention.

According to this embodiment, the mobile terminal comprises a firstpresetting unit 510, an obtaining unit 520 and a triggering unit 530.The triggering unit 530 comprises a first triggering unit 531 and asecond triggering unit 532.

The first presetting unit 510 is configured for presetting for themobile terminal a first coordinate system corresponding to the firststate and a second coordinate system corresponding to the second state.

The obtaining unit 520 is configured for obtaining from the touch screena gesture in a first direction as input by a touch object on the touchscreen when the mobile terminal is in the first state.

The first triggering unit 531 is configured for triggering a first touchcommand in response to the gesture in the first direction.

The obtaining unit 520 is further configured for obtaining from thetouch screen a gesture in a second direction as input by the touchobject on the touch screen when the mobile terminal is in the secondstate. The second direction is the same as the first direction.

The second triggering unit 532 is configured for triggering the firsttouch command in response to the gesture in the second direction.

Specifically, the obtaining unit 520 may comprise (not shown in FIG. 5):

-   -   a parameter storage unit configured for storing a first gravity        parameter value corresponding to the first state and a second        gravity parameter value corresponding to the second state as        preset gravity parameter values for the gravity sensor; and    -   a state determination unit configured for determining that the        mobile terminal is in the first state if the gravity sensor        senses the first gravity parameter value, or determining that        the mobile terminal is in the second state if the gravity sensor        senses the second gravity parameter value.

Specifically, the first triggering unit 531 may comprise (not shown inFIG. 5):

-   -   a first information obtaining unit configured for obtaining        touch point information regarding a touch point at which the        gesture in the first direction touches the touch screen;    -   a first information mapping unit configured for mapping the        touch point information into the first coordinate system; and    -   a first command triggering unit configured for obtaining the        first touch command based on a coordinate value and a coordinate        direction of the touch point information in the first coordinate        system.

Specifically, the second triggering unit 532 may comprise (not shown inFIG. 5):

-   -   a coordinate converting unit configured for converting the        second coordinate system into the first coordinate system;    -   a second information obtaining unit configured for obtaining        touch point information regarding a touch point at which the        gesture in the second direction touches the touch screen;    -   a second information mapping unit configured for mapping the        touch point information into the converted first coordinate        system; and    -   a second command triggering unit configured for obtaining the        first touch command based on a coordinate value and a coordinate        direction of the touch point information in the first coordinate        system.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the third embodiment of the mobile terminalaccording to the present invention.

is According to this embodiment, the mobile terminal comprises a secondpresetting unit 610, an obtaining unit 620 and a triggering unit 630.The triggering unit 630 comprises a first triggering unit 631 and asecond triggering unit 632.

The second presetting unit 610 is configured for presetting acorrespondence between, on one hand, the first direction in the firststate and the second direction in the second state and, on the otherhand, the first touch command.

The obtaining unit 620 is configured for obtaining from the touch screena gesture in a first direction as input by a touch object on the touchscreen when the mobile terminal is in the first state.

The first triggering unit 631 is configured for triggering a first touchcommand in response to the gesture in the first direction.

The obtaining unit 620 is further configured for obtaining from thetouch screen a gesture in a second direction as input by the touchobject on the touch screen when the mobile terminal is in the secondstate. The second direction is the same as the first direction.

The second triggering unit 632 is configured for triggering the firsttouch command in response to the gesture in the second direction.

Specifically, the obtaining unit 620 may comprise (not shown in FIG. 6):

-   -   a parameter storage unit configured for storing a first gravity        parameter value corresponding to the first state and a second        gravity parameter value corresponding to the second state as        preset gravity parameter values for the gravity sensor; and    -   a state determination unit configured for determining that the        mobile terminal is in the first state if the gravity sensor        senses the first gravity parameter value, or determining that        the mobile terminal is in the second state if the gravity sensor        senses the second gravity parameter value.

Specifically, the first triggering unit 631 may comprise (not shown inFIG. 6):

-   -   a first correspondence retrieving unit configured for retrieving        the preset correspondence based on the first direction; and    -   a first command triggering unit configured for obtaining from        the correspondence a first touch command corresponding to the        first direction.

Specifically, the second triggering unit 632 may comprise (not shown inFIG. 6):

-   -   a second correspondence retrieving unit configured for        retrieving the preset correspondence based on the second        direction; and    -   a second command triggering unit configured for obtaining from        the correspondence the first touch command corresponding to the        second direction.

It can be seen from the above the embodiments of the present inventionthat the mobile terminal according to the present invention has arectangular touch screen with long sides and short sides. The mobileterminal has two states: a first state in which only the short sides areparallel with a horizontal surface and a second state in which only thelong sides are parallel with the horizontal surface. A gesture in afirst direction as input by a touch object on the touch screen isobtained from the touch screen when the mobile terminal is in the firststate. A first touch command is triggered in response to the gesture inthe first direction. A gesture in a second direction as input by thetouch object on the touch screen is obtained from the touch screen whenthe mobile terminal is in the second state, the second direction beingthe same as the first direction. The first touch command is triggered inresponse to the gesture in the second direction. With the embodiments ofthe present application, when a touch gesture is input through a mobileterminal, it is possible to ensure that the same input gesture of theuser will trigger the same corresponding touch command, regardless ofhow the orientation of the mobile terminal changes. Since a uniformoperation gesture for the same operational instruction can be achievedby means of self-conversion of the mobile terminal, the user does notneed to remember the respective touch gestures in different states ofthe mobile terminal, such that the user experience can be improved.

It can be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the solutionsaccording to the embodiments of the present invention can be implementedin software in combination with a general hardware platform as desired.Therefore, the solutions according to the embodiments of the presentinvention, or the portions thereof contributive to the prior art, can besubstantially embodied in software product. Such a computer softwareproduct can be stored in a storage medium such as ROM/RAM, magnetic diskor optical disc. The storage medium may carry instructions for enablinga computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server or anetwork device) to implement the method according to the embodiments (orsome portion thereof) according to the present invention.

The embodiments of the present invention have been described in aprogressive manner such that the same or similar portions of theembodiments can reference each other. The description of each embodimentfocuses on its differences from other embodiments. In particular, theproduct embodiments have been explained in a simplified manner as theyare substantially similar to the method embodiments. The definitions ofthe method embodiments also apply to the product embodiments.

The present invention is not limited to the above described embodiments.A number of modifications, equivalent alternatives and improvements canbe made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spiritand principle of the present invention. These modifications, equivalentalternatives and improvements are encompassed by the scope of thepresent invention.

1. A method for processing touch input, applied in a mobile terminalhaving a rectangular touch screen with long sides and short sides, themobile terminal having two states: a first state in which only the shortsides are parallel with a horizontal surface and a second state in whichonly the long sides are parallel with the horizontal surface, the methodcomprising: obtaining from the touch screen a gesture in a firstdirection as input by a touch object on the touch screen when the mobileterminal is in the first state; triggering a first touch command inresponse to the gesture in the first direction; obtaining from the touchscreen a gesture in a second direction as input by the touch object onthe touch screen when the mobile terminal is in the second state, thesecond direction being the same as the first direction; and triggeringthe first touch command in response to the gesture in the seconddirection.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the mobileterminal comprises a gravity sensor and the method further comprises:presetting for the gravity sensor a first gravity parameter valuecorresponding to the first state and a second gravity parameter valuecorresponding to the second state; and determining that the mobileterminal is in the first state if the gravity sensor senses the firstgravity parameter value, or determining that the mobile terminal is inthe second state if the gravity sensor senses the second gravityparameter value.
 3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:presetting for the mobile terminal a first coordinate systemcorresponding to the first state and a second coordinate systemcorresponding to the second state.
 4. The method according to claim 3,wherein the step of triggering a first touch command in response to thegesture in the first direction comprises: obtaining touch pointinformation regarding a touch point at which the gesture in the firstdirection touches the touch screen; mapping the touch point informationinto the first coordinate system; and obtaining the first touch commandbased on a coordinate value and a coordinate direction of the touchpoint information in the first coordinate system.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 3, wherein the step of triggering the first touchcommand in response to the gesture in the second direction comprises:converting the second coordinate system into the first coordinatesystem; obtaining touch point information regarding a touch point atwhich the gesture in the second direction touches the touch screen;mapping the touch point information into the converted first coordinatesystem; and obtaining the first touch command based on a coordinatevalue and a coordinate direction of the touch point information in thefirst coordinate system.
 6. The method according to claim 1, furthercomprising: presetting a correspondence between, on one hand, the firstdirection in the first state and the second direction in the secondstate and, on the other hand, the first touch command.
 7. The methodaccording to claim 6, wherein the step of triggering a first touchcommand in response to the gesture in the first direction comprises:retrieving the preset correspondence based on the first direction; andobtaining from the correspondence the first touch command correspondingto the first direction, and wherein the step of triggering a first touchcommand in response to the gesture in the second direction comprises:retrieving the preset correspondence based on the second direction; andobtaining from the correspondence the first touch command correspondingto the second direction.
 8. The method according to claim 1, whereinboth the first and the second directions are relative to the horizontalsurface.
 9. A mobile terminal having a rectangular touch screen withlong sides and short sides, the mobile terminal having two states: afirst state in which only the short sides are parallel with a horizontalsurface and a second state in which only the long sides are parallelwith the horizontal surface, the mobile terminal comprising: anobtaining unit configured for obtaining from the touch screen a gesturein a first direction as input by a touch object on the touch screen whenthe mobile terminal is in the first state; and a triggering unitconfigured for triggering a first touch command in response to thegesture in the first direction; wherein the obtaining unit is furtherconfigured for obtaining from the touch screen a gesture in a seconddirection as input by the touch object on the touch screen when themobile terminal is in the second state, the second direction being thesame as the first direction; and the triggering unit is furtherconfigured for triggering the first touch command in response to thegesture in the second direction.
 10. The mobile terminal according toclaim 9, further comprising a gravity sensor, wherein the obtaining unitcomprises: a parameter storage unit configured for storing a firstgravity parameter value corresponding to the first state and a secondgravity parameter value corresponding to the second state as presetgravity parameter values for the gravity sensor; and a statedetermination unit configured for determining that the mobile terminalis in the first state if the gravity sensor senses the first gravityparameter value, or determining that the mobile terminal is in thesecond state if the gravity sensor senses the second gravity parametervalue.
 11. The mobile terminal according to claim 9, further comprising:a first presetting unit configured for presetting for the mobileterminal a first coordinate system corresponding to the first state anda second coordinate system corresponding to the second state; whereinthe triggering unit comprises a first triggering unit and a secondtriggering unit, the first triggering unit comprising: a firstinformation obtaining unit configured for obtaining touch pointinformation regarding a touch point at which the gesture in the firstdirection touches the touch screen; a first information mapping unitconfigured for mapping the touch point information into the firstcoordinate system; and a first command triggering unit configured forobtaining the first touch command based on a coordinate value and acoordinate direction of the touch point information in the firstcoordinate system, the second triggering unit comprising: a coordinateconverting unit configured for converting the second coordinate systeminto the first coordinate system; a second information obtaining unitconfigured for obtaining touch point information regarding a touch pointat which the gesture in the second direction touches the touch screen; asecond information mapping unit configured for mapping the touch pointinformation into the converted first coordinate system; and a secondcommand triggering unit configured for obtaining the first touch commandbased on a coordinate value and a coordinate direction of the touchpoint information in the first coordinate system.
 12. The mobileterminal according to claim 9, further comprising: a second presettingunit configured for presetting a correspondence between, on one hand,the first direction in the first state and the second direction in thesecond state and, on the other hand, the first touch command; whereinthe triggering unit comprises a first triggering unit and a secondtriggering unit, the first triggering unit comprising: a firstcorrespondence retrieving unit configured for retrieving the presetcorrespondence based on the first direction; and a first commandtriggering unit configured for obtaining from the correspondence thefirst touch command corresponding to the first direction, and the secondtriggering unit comprising: a second correspondence retrieving unitconfigured for retrieving the preset correspondence based on the seconddirection; and a second command triggering unit configured for obtainingfrom the correspondence the first touch command corresponding to thesecond direction.